One thing Tony Sellitto has never lacked is spirit.

The self-professed "brash New Jersey guy" had it when he coached Maryknoll School to the 1984 boys basketball state title and Hawai'i Pacific University to the 1993 NAIA national championship.

The spirit is still there for Sellitto today at age 70, and after battling prostate cancer and a stroke.

"There are young guys that look old, and old guys that look young. I'm an old guy that looks young," Sellitto said.

In early March, Sellitto completed the first year of his second stint with Hawai'i Pacific.

"I haven't changed," said the fiery and intense Sellitto. "I'm the same as 10 years ago."

The first time around, from 1988 to 2002, Sellitto led the Sea Warriors to the 1993 NAIA national title.

It still stands as the state's only national basketball championship at the collegiate level.

"It put Hawai'i Pacific and Hawai'i on the map as a basketball state," said Sellitto, who also served simultaneously as HPU's athletic director. "I'm proud of that, contributing to that reputation.

"People said, 'Hey, they do play basketball in Hawai'i.' "

Prior to the 1992-93 season, Hawai'i Loa and Hawai'i Pacific merged, which brought Roger Huggins and Andy Gardner to the Sea Warriors.

"We merged schools," said former HPU assistant Russell Dung. "It wasn't easy to coach. There were all good player, all-stars, with different personalities."

During the 1993 NAIA national tournament in Kansas City, Mo., Sellitto remembers losing hope after Huggins, a star center, suffered an injury in HPU's second game.

"I didn't think we'd win after we lost Roger," Sellitto said. "I thought we'd be here just for vacation, and didn't think we had much of a chance. There were other good teams."

Forward Michael Johnson was a lot more confident, Sellitto remembers.

"He said we got rid of the slow guy, we can run faster," Sellitto said. "That was a heck of a response. That was typical of their attitudes."

HPU wound up winning five games in seven days in Kansas City.

The starting five that season were guards Lemar Young and David Smith, forwards Johnson and James Williams, and center Huggins. Mike McDaniel started when Huggins was injured during the national tournament.

The starters and a couple of bench players all went on to play professional basketball overseas, said Sellitto, the 1992-93 NAIA National Coach of the Year.

"It's easy to be a good coach when you have good players," Sellitto said.

From 1992 to 1997, the Sea Warriors were consistently in the NAIA top 10.

He decided to step down as coach in 2002 because of health problems. His career record at HPU was 298-136 with 12 winning seasons.

"I had cancer and a stroke," Sellitto said. "The doctor said you shouldn't do this, and shouldn't do that. I walked from maybe 9 to 11 every morning; rain or shine it didn't matter. I got healthier, and of course I wasn't under stress. I got better and better and better. Finally, I was back to where I am."

Added Dung: "He was a disciplinarian as a coach, and he disciplined himself (to get healthy)."

When the HPU coaching position became available early last year, Sellitto was asked if he wanted to coach again and he accepted. His first day on the job was March 3, 2008.

"Knowing him, I guess he had some conviction he could kick start the program again, and he probably will," said Dung, who played for Sellitto at Maryknoll and coached with him for 30 years at Maryknoll and HPU.

The Sea Warriors, now competing in NCAA Division II, went 9-17 overall and 3-11 in the Pacific West Conference last season, but Sellitto vowed "we'll get better."

He picked up his 300th collegiate coaching victory Dec. 21, a 79-72 win over Coe College (Iowa).

MARYKNOLL MASTER

Sellitto coached at Maryknoll from 1965 to 1988.

The Spartans' 1984 championship is the school's only major state boys basketball title.

Maryknoll's starting five were Garrett Gabriel, Mike Among, Kui Ostrowski, Ben Valle and Tony Turner.

"If you don't have good players, you won't win anything," Sellitto said.

Early in his coaching career at Maryknoll, Sellitto didn't have a lot of success.

In the 1960s, he recalled Punahou beating his Spartans, 77-12. And Kamehameha, led by Rockne Freitas, routing Maryknoll.

"I was adamant we'd win this someday," Sellitto said.

Maryknoll won "six or seven" Interscholastic League of Honolulu basketball titles with the first coming in 1976.

The Spartans also won consecutive state Boys A titles, the equivalent of Division II, from 1978 to 1980.

AN ATHLETE HIMSELF

Sellitto grew up in West Orange, N.J.

He competed in baseball, basketball, football, boxing and fast-pitch softball.

"It's bigger on the East Coast," Sellitto said of softball. "When I was 15 years old I was paid to play. Patterson was the team (name). People paid to get in on weekends. There were 200, 400 or more to see games."

For baseball, he was drafted by several major league teams, but decided not to sign.

"I never really wanted to play," Sellitto said.

He attended Colorado College and participated in four sports.

Sellitto later enlisted in the Army and was assigned to Schofield Barracks. He then took the coaching job at Maryknoll.

Sellitto continued to play fast-pitch softball here and was considered one of the state's best pitchers in the 1960s and '70s.

He was a part of multiple state championship teams with Midas Muffler.

Les Murakami was a player/coach for Midas Muffler.

Murakami had 1,079 career coaching victories from 1971 to 2000 with the University of Hawai'i baseball team.

"I know he won 1,000 games at the University of Hawai'i, but I tell him this whenever I meet him, I made his career," Sellitto said. " 'If you can coach me, you can coach anybody.'

"I was a brash New Jersey guy in Hawai'i. I was aggressive and outspoken. I thought I was the best player."

In the early 1970s, Sellitto even exchanged trash talk with softball pitching legend Eddie Feigner of "The King and His Court" fame during a benefit game at Roosevelt High School.

Sellitto had faced Feigner back in New Jersey when he was 18. At that time, Feigner was in his mid-30s and in his prime.

"The guy threw BBs," Sellitto said.

In their Roosevelt encounter about 13 years later, Sellitto was in his prime.

Sellitto and his team were getting the better of Feigner's group during the game, so Sellitto decided to rag on him.

"We buried 'em 12-2; I don't know what the score was," said Sellitto, who pitched that day. "I said, 'There's no way you're beating our team and said a few words.' He said, 'No way you'd beat me five years ago.' I said, 'This isn't five years ago, this is today.' I was always like that even in basketball. Even now I'm horrible."

So the story goes. The spirit Sellitto possessed back then, he still has today.